# Why do so many commercials have disclaimer non-attorney spokesperson? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 17, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619 "2016-06-17T16:51:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/1 "2016-06-17T16:51:25Z")
It seems to be in every tv ad. non-attorney spokesperson! non-attorney spokesperson! non-attorney spokesperson! Since I’m not a lawyer I guess I’m a non-attorney spokesperson too. 😃 What’s the deal? Why do we constantly have to be told that the person talking, in the Ad isn’t a lawyer? Especially since it’s commonly known that claims made in tv Ads are typically vetted by the company’s legal department. 😉 What are they trying to accomplish with this disclaimer? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/2 "2016-06-17T17:13:56Z")
I am an attorney, but I don’t advertise, and it’s been years since I passed the mandatory ethics exam, but my hazy memory is feeding me two things: 1. Don’t want people claiming that they have an attorney-client relationship with you based on the commercial. 2. People still trust attorneys, and you don’t want people suing you, claiming that they rejected an insurance settlement because the commercial told them to do so. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/3 "2016-06-17T17:41:06Z")
Never seen this, or at least never noticed it. What type of product or services are being advertised? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/4 "2016-06-17T17:53:08Z")
A lot of over the counter meds use that disclaimer. “I had terrible acne until I tried Jack’s face cream. Blah. Blah, blah” The disclaimer is usually after any personal testimonial about a product You’ll also hear it in legal ads. Jack’s law Firm got me money after I slipped and fell in the store It’s a testimonial about a service that was provided. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/5 "2016-06-17T18:01:34Z")
I don’t think regular testimonials for consumer products typically include that phrase. Are you sure you aren’t just watching ads for law firms and assuming that the phrase appears in other ads? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/6 "2016-06-17T18:08:23Z")
I’m pretty sure I’ve heard it in a few consumer ads. Basically patent medicines. Where they give testimonials that the product helped them. It’s a fine line because they can’t say the product cures something. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/7 "2016-06-17T18:18:02Z")
The latest thing here is that ads that claim “85% of the people we asked said they would recommend the product” now have to say how many people they asked. So you see in small print at the bottom of the screen that they asked 35 people. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/8 "2016-06-17T18:27:48Z")
I can’t think of a specific product as an example. Late night tv is filled with parent medicine ads with testimonials that “they improved my life” or “I felt more confident after using this acne cream”. I pretty much ignore the brand name. I looked on YouTube for an example. ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/9 "2016-06-17T19:30:35Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > It seems to be in every tv ad. non-attorney spokesperson! non-attorney spokesperson! non-attorney spokesperson! **EVERY** ad? My recollection is that it is only in ads for a law firm. The medicine ad disclaimer is that the person speaking isn’t a doctor. And other ads have no disclaimer at all, other than “Real people! Not actors!” (as if to say that actors aren’t real people) ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/10 "2016-06-17T19:44:45Z")
[Sokolove Law TV Commercials](https://www.ispot.tv/brands/d3V/sokolove-law) > **[James Sokolove](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Sokolove)** > > James G. Sokolove (born October 4, 1944) is an American attorney known for advertising legal services on television. Though he was the largest legal advertiser in the United States in 2007, Sokolove's firm acts only as a lead generator and does not currently try cases. > The son of a personal injury lawyer, Sokolove was raised in Revere, Massachusetts. He received a B.A. from Case Western Reserve University in 1966 and a juris doctor from Suffolk University Law School in 1969. He also received a c... According to Wikipedia, the firm doesn’t practice law; they just serve as a lead generator for lawyers. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/11 "2016-06-17T19:46:51Z")
Yeah, the ones I’ve seen have been from law firms. The biggest one right now seems to be a suit against Johnson & Johnson claiming the use of their talcum powder causes ovarian cancer. There are other ads about insidious side effects of acid inhibitors like Prevacid and the blood thinner Predaxa. ETA - ninja’d by **Duckster**. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2016, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/12 "2016-06-17T19:48:56Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > [Sokolove Law TV Commercials](https://www.ispot.tv/brands/d3V/sokolove-law) > > [James Sokolove - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Sokolove) > > According to Wikipedia, the firm doesn’t practice law; they just serve as a lead generator for lawyers. Wow. Outsourced ambulance chasing. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2016, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/13 "2016-06-18T19:57:00Z")
These are usually for law firms that either specialize in specific types of (somewhat sleazy) law practice like DUI, workplace injury, product liability etc. or firms that are attached to large class-action suits (the mesothelioma ones are pretty common). They’ll feature a well-groomed guy in a fancy suit speaking authoritatively about potential compensation you could receive. The disclaimer is basically stating that the guy is just a hired actor reading lines, he’s not an actual lawyer giving actual legal advice (lest someone hire _another shyster and try and sue them for bad legal advice!_) Same as commercials for medicine that show someone in a white lab coat giving medical information but who isn’t an actual doctor. All part of our ridiculously litigious society. Automobile companies won’t show a car going around a curve without including the disclaimer “PROFESSIONAL DRIVER. DO NOT ATTEMPT”. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2016, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/14 "2016-06-18T20:16:55Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > These are usually for law firms that either specialize in specific types of (somewhat sleazy) law practice like DUI, workplace injury, product liability etc. or firms that are attached to large class-action suits (the mesothelioma ones are pretty common). They’ll feature a well-groomed guy in a fancy suit speaking authoritatively about potential compensation you could receive. Or a very attractive blonde woman in many of the ones I’ve seen. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2016, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-so-many-commercials-have-disclaimer-non-attorney-spokesperson/757619/15 "2016-06-18T20:22:03Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Or a very attractive blonde woman in many of the ones I’ve seen. If it’s the ones I’m thinking of, you need a serious re-calibration of your Attract-O-Meter. Stare into the pits of insanity that are her eyes.